A number of technologies have been developed in response to the increased need for secured transactions, communications, and data storage. One such technology is biometrics. Biometrics is a technology for uniquely recognizing humans based upon one or more intrinsic physical, cognitive, or behavioral traits. Exemplary biometrics may include fingerprints, facial patterns, iris patterns, deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA), voice recognition, etc.
For example, a fingerprint can be scanned using a biometric system, such as a biometric sensor, and the uniqueness of the fingerprint can be determined by analyzing the patterns of ridges and furrows that occur on the scanned fingerprint. Authentication of the fingerprint can be performed manually by a human or electronically by comparing any number of the fingerprint patterns to existing fingerprint data until a match occurs. Thereby, allowing an individual to be personally identified by his or her physical traits.
Similarly, an iris scan may be used to personally identify an individual. Iris recognition may be performed, e.g., using camera technologies with infrared illumination to reduce specular reflection from the individual's convex cornea. This allows for a detailed image of the iris, which may be converted into a digital template and used to personally identify an individual by his or her physical traits.